Signature deliveries for former folders



July 31, 1956 H. J. LUEHRS SIGNATURE DELIVERIES FOR FORMER FOLDERS 4 Sheets-Sheet I.

Filed Aug. 18. 1953 July 31, 1956 H. J. LUEHRS 2,756,996

SIGNATURE DEL'IVERIES FOR FORMER FOLDERS Filed Aug. 18, 1953 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 July 31, 1956 H. J. LUEHRS SIGNATURE DELIVERIES FOR FORMER FOLDERS 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Aug. 18, 1953 July 31, 1956 H. J. LUEHRS SIGNATURE DELIVERIES FOR FORMER FOLDERS 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Aug. 18. 1953 United States Patent SIGNATURE DELIVERIES FOR FORMER FOLDERS Hans J. Luehrs, Westerly, R. I., assignor, by mesne assignments, to The Cottrell Company, Westerly, R. I., a corporation of Delaware Application August 18, 1953, Serial No. 374,981

6 Claims. (Cl. 271-87) In conventional folder deliveries the folded signatures are overlapped as they are delivered on the necessarily slow speed belt conveyors. The present greatly increased speed of the printing presses has rendered this type of delivery almost impossible, since the overlapped signatures have to be registered by hand as they are removed from the conveyor belts for transfer to predetermined places, as for instance, binders.

One object of my invention is to provide means for obviating the above undesirable features by releasing the signatures from their delivery cylinders at a point beneath the pile of previously delivered signatures.

Another object is to provide means for registering the pile of signatures before they are removed therefrom in stacks to be conveyed to a predetermined place, as for instance, a binder.

Another object is to provide a delivery pile box in which the sides of the box serve as front, side and rear stops for registering the signatures as the pile is built up from the bottom thereof.

Another object is to provide an endless belt conveyor adjacent the delivery pile box so that the registered signatures may be removed from the top of the pile in stacks and placed on said belt.

Another object is to provide means for discharging blasts or jets of compressed air upwards against the bottom of the pile and for forcing the signatures against the bottom of the pile as the signatures are released from the delivery cylinder grippers.

Another object is to provide stationary hollow compressed air discharge guides located in circumferential grooves in the delivery cylinder, said guides having discharge ports along their tops for directing the jets of air upwards against the bottom of the delivery pile.

A practical embodiment of this invention is represented in the accompanying drawings in connection with a double delivery for a folder.

Fig. 1 represents a diagrammatic side view of a folder with my improved signature delivery included therein.

Figs. 2 and 2a represent a longitudinal vertical section on an enlarged scale in one plane.

Figs. 3 and 3a represent a similar section in another plane.

Figs. 4 and 4a represent a similar section in still another plane.

Fig. 5 represents a detail longitudinal section through the delivery pile box and its adjacent elements.

Fig. 6 represents a detail front view of the same.

Fig. 7 represents a detail top plan view of the same.

The former of the folder is denoted by 1, the nipping rolls by 2, 2, the feed rolls by 3, 3, the rotary cutting cylinders by 4, 4, the transfer cylinders by 5, 5, the delivery cylinders by 6, 6, the delivery pile boxes by 7, 7, and the conveyor belts by 8, 8.

Each cutting cylinder 4 is shown as provided with two knives 9, which coact with two cutting blocks 10 on the other cutting cylinder to sever the folded signatures from the traveling web or webs.

2,756,996 Patented July 31, 1956 Each cutting cylinder 4 is also shown as provided with two sets of impaling pins 11. Each transfer cylinder 5 is shown as provided with three set-s of grippers 12 for taking the folded signatures from their respective sets of impaling pins 11 on the coacting cutting cylinder. Each delivery cylinder 6 is shown as provided with four set-s of grippers 13 for taking the folded signatures from the sets of grippers 12 on the coacting transfer cylinder 5 at one point in the rotation of the delivery cylinder, and for releasing the signatures as they reach another point in the rotation of the delivery cylinder beneath the pile of previously released signatures in the delivery pile box 7.

This box 7 is open at its top and bottom and the four sides of the box serve as front, side and rear stops to register the released signatures as the pile builds up within the box. The wall which forms the rear stop is preferably made of less height than the wall of the box which forms the front stop and the walls of the box which form the side stops are preferably cut away, as shown at 20 to facilitate the removal of groups of registered signatures from the top of the pile in said box, to the conveyor belt 8.

The delivery cylinder 6 is shown sa having two circumferential grooves 14 for receiving the arcuate bottom edges of the walls of the delivery pile box 7, which form the side register stops for the pile of signatures.

Between these two circumferential grooves 14, I have shown three additional circumferential grooves 15', for receiving the hollow arcuate signature guides 16 over which guides the successive signatures are passed on the way to their releasing point. These hollow guides project from an angular cross frame 16*, and their compressed air passages 17 are provided with rows of outlet ports 18 for discharging the compressed air upwards against the bottom of the pile of signatures in the box 7. These passages 17 are supplied with compressed air by vertical passages 19 in the cross frame 16* which are connected to a source of compressed air supply, not shown herein.

The lower portion of the rear wall of the delivery pile box 7 may be extended as shown at 21 to form a guard for the signatures as they are passed into the bottom of the box by the grippers 13 of the delivery cylinder 6.

The operation of the sets of impaling pins 11 on each of the cutting cylinders 4 is controlled by the stationary cam 22; the operation of the sets of grippers 12 on each of the transfer cylinders 5 is controlled by the stationary cam 23, and the operation of the sets of grippers 13 on each of the delivery cylinders 6 is controlled by the stationary cam 24. w

The drive for the cutting, transfer and delivery cylinggrs is shown as including a train of gears 24*, 25, 26 and In operation: The impaling pins 11 on each of the cutting cylinders 4 take the advance edge of the longitudinally folded web or webs as the signatures are out therefrom by the coaction of the cutting knives 9 and their blocks 10. These signatures are taken from the impaling pin 11 by the grippers 12 on the transfer cylinder 5 and transferred to the grippers 13 on the delivery cylinder 6. These grippers 13 carry the signatures over the compressed air discharge guides 16 to a position in the box 7 beneath the pile of signatures therein and then released by said grippers.

These released signatures are then forced upwards against the bottom of the pile by the blasts or jets of compressed air issuing from the ports 18 along the tops of the said guides, said compressed air serving to support the pile to permit the introduction of thesignatures to the desired point beneath the pile, to build the pile up from the bottom. Stacks of these signatures, which have been registered as the pile was built up, may then be removed from the top of the pile and placed on the belt 8 of the endless conveyor, to be conveyed to a predetermined place.

While I have shown my invention in connection with a double delivery for former folders, it is obvious that it may be applied to jaw or other types of folders having any desired number of deliveries without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention. It is also evident that various changes may be made in the construction, form and arrangement of the several elements without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention.

What I claim is:

1. In a signature delivery for folders, a signature pile delivery box, a delivery cylinder provided with one or more sets of grippers operable to take signatures at one point, and to release said signatures at another point heheath a pile of previously released signatures, and means operable to direct compressed air against the bottom of the pile to support the pile and to blow successively released signatures upwards against the bottom of said pile.

2. in a signature delivery for folders, a signature pile delivery box, a delivery cylinder provided with one or more sets of grippers operable to take signatures at one point, and to release said signatures at another point beheath a pile of previously released signatures, means operable to direct compressed air against the bottom of the pile to support the pile and to blow successively released signatures upwards against the bottom of said pile, and means for front, side and back registering said pile before the signatures are removed from the top thereof.

3. In a signature delivery for folders, a signature pile delivery box open at its top and bottom, a delivery cylinder provided with one or more sets of grippers operable to take signatures at one point and to release said signatures at another point beneath a pile of previously released signatures in said box, and means operable to direct compressed air against the bottom of the pile to support said pile and to blow succesively released signatures upwards against the bottom of said pile, the four sides of said box serving as front, side and back stops for registering the signatures before they are removed from the top of the pile.

4. In a signature delivery for folders, a signature pile box, a delivery cylinder provided with one or more sets of grippers for taking signatures at one point and for releasing the signatures at another point beneath a pile of previously released signatures, and stationary compressed air discharge guides having rows of ports along their tops for directing jets of compressed air against the bottom of the pile and against the undersides of the released signatures, to blow them upwards into contact with the bottom of the pile, said delivery cylinder having circumferential grooves for receiving the said guides.

5. In a signature delivery for folders, a signature pile delivery box, a pile of signatures therein, a delivery cylinder provided with one or more sets of grippers for taking the signatures at one point and to release the signatures at another point beneath said pile, and guides operable to discharge compressed air against the bottom of the pile to support said pile and to force the released signatures upwards against the bottom of the pile, said delivery cylinder having two circumferential grooves for receiving the bottoms of two opposite side walls of said box.

6. In a signature delivery for folders, a signature pile delivery box, a pile of signatures therein, a delivery cylinder provided with one or more sets of grippers for taking signatures at one point and to release the signatures at another point beneath said pile, and guides operable to discharge compressed air against the bottom of the pile to support said pile and to force the released signatures upwards against the bottom of the pile, said delivery cylinder having two circumferential grooves for receiving the bottoms of two opposite side walls of said box, and also having intermediate circumferential grooves for receiving the said guides.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 835,002 Sturtevant Nov. 6, 1906 1,960,311 Labombarde May 29, 1934 2,176,939 Woolford Oct. 24, 1939 2,600,469 Breuers June 17, 1952 

